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Chief Justice endorses law school move

At the moment it is little more than a "pretty impressive hole", to use the Vice-Chancellor's description. But the University's new law school, which will bring the lawyers back to the main campus for the first time in more than a century, has been ceremonially endorsed by NSW Chief Justice Jim Spigelman in front of an audience of Sydney's great and good.

Work on the site - bordering the edge of Victoria Park - has been going on since the start of the year, and has seen the demolition of the Stephen Roberts lecture theatre and the Edgeworth David building. Construction work is expected to last until the end of 2007, with the new building scheduled to open in 2008.

Designed by architects Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp, the seven-storey building will open up a new gateway to the University. It will provide more than 18,000 square metres of floor space, with provision for open spaces and underground parking.

Unveiling a plaque to mark the occasion, Justice Spigelman said he had always been an advocate of moving the law school to the main campus. As the interaction between law and other disciplines had deepened, both sides stood to benefit from a closer union.

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Gavin Brown, added: "If the University wants to be seen as internationally significant, it is essential to have the law school at its intellectual centre."

Guests at the plaque unveiling ceremony included former prime minister Gough Whitlam, a graduate of the law school, and his wife Margaret; the University Chancellor, Justice Kim Santow; the Dean of Law, Professor Ron McCallum; and a number of prominent judges, magistrates, alumni and benefactors.